People are scary and scary to death.

Su Ziyun, seeing Ji Rui and Ji Yu, was puzzled and shifted her body. "Why are you here?" she asked.

Closing her eyes, she realized that this prison was useless for someone like Ji Yu.

"Miss Su, are you surprised to see us?" Ji Rui and Ji Yu looked at Su Ziyun condescendingly. Ji Rui, in particular, couldn't hide her satisfaction at the corner of her lips.

She gloated, finding great joy in seeing Su Ziyun, whom she despised, in such a state of degradation.

Su Ziyun, covered in dirt and with disheveled hair, looked nothing like the beautiful person she used to be.

"Ha! Su Ziyun, I never expected to see you in such a state. I waited six long years to witness the joyous occasion of you and the Three Kings. And now, I finally get to witness it as you rot in prison. The scene at the city gate that day was exhilarating!"

Ji Rui's gloating expression showed her delight in seeing the person she hated reduced to such a pitiful state.

Su Ziyun's lips trembled, but she didn't utter a word as she stared at Ji Rui with hatred in her eyes.

She had fallen into this abyss, and it was absurd how she had ended up in this sorry state. It felt as if Ji Rui had planned it all along.

"Miss Su, if you answer a question for Young Master, he can rescue you from this prison," Ji Yu said in a heroic manner, maintaining his elegant demeanor.

Rescue her? Su Ziyun raised her eyes, looked at Ji Yu, and felt a glimmer of hope. Could Ji Yu really be so kind?

"What do you want to know?"

The desire for freedom made her willing to trust anyone who could potentially get her out of this place.

"Tell Young Master, what happened between you and Ling Qiushui that day? Did you hear a sound resembling a bell, a sound that is crisper than an ordinary bell and carries a sinking feeling?"

"Bell..." Su Ziyun furrowed her brow and pondered for a moment. Unnoticed by anyone, her narrowed eyes suddenly froze as she sneered at Ji Rui.

"Do you think I'll tell you the truth? Ji Rui, you little hypocrite. Your family lineage may be superior to mine, but every time you see me, you spew out sarcastic words, ugly insults, and take pleasure in demeaning me. Don't think I don't know about your affair with that pretty boy. I thought I would wait for your return to expose your behavior to the entire capital of the Haoyue Kingdom. You, shameless hypocrite, still have the audacity to aspire to Cloud City? With your ruined reputation, which has been tasted by thousands of men, do you really think you're worthy?"

Su Ziyun's expression turned crazed, her face contorted with a hideous distortion.

Su Qi, hidden in the darkness, grinned. Even without ringing the Soul Devouring Bell, it could control people's thoughts.

The angrier these three became, the better. The angrier they got, the quicker the effects of the medicine would take hold.

Su Ziyun's sudden transformation caught Ji Yu and Ji Rui off guard.

"You dare to slander me so recklessly!" Ji Rui's anger and embarrassment were evident as she swiftly whipped Su Ziyun's frail body with her fire silver whip.

"Ouch!" Su Ziyun cried out in pain, her arm instantly covered in blood. Fear filled her eyes.

"Have you lost your mind? Don't you want to live?" Ji Rui, humiliated multiple times that day, had already calmed down. Seeing the second whip about to strike again, Ji Yu quickly intervened.

"Rui'er, are you out of your mind? This is the prison of the Ministry of Punishment. If you kill someone here, you won't live either."

"Brother, get out of my way. Today, I will kill this troublemaker!" Ji Rui's eyes were red with anger, and she ignored all advice.

If Su Zimo's three slaps were a great insult, the secret Su Ziyun mentioned was a threat to her life. How did Su Ziyun find out about it? If she didn't kill her, she would never be at peace. Only in death would her secret be buried forever.

She understood that if the world discovered the truth, she wouldn't even be able to marry an ordinary person, let alone enter Cloud City.

"Rui'er..."

"Step aside!"

Ji Rui forcefully pushed Ji Yu away, and the second whip descended swiftly.

"Ouch!" Su Ziyun cried out in pain as the whip struck her face forcefully.

"Ahhh... Yes!" Su Ziyun screamed in horror, feeling the searing pain.

Outside the prison, the footsteps of several people quickened to varying degrees.

"That's Yun'er's voice!" Xie Lengchan, who had been rescued by Xie Yuan, exclaimed.

Hearing this, Su Qi narrowed his eyes with a smile. This unexpected turn of events worked in his favor.

Hidden on the second floor of the cell, he had a clear view of everything happening below through the small gap between the beams.

"How dare you trespass into the prison of the Criminal Department with intent to kill! Who are you?" Lord Ke's angry voice echoed through the cell.

Ji Yu and Ji Rui were equally surprised. How could they have encountered them? The situation was now escalating rapidly.

The two siblings attempted to leave but found themselves blocked by an invisible barrier.

Perplexed, the brother and sister wondered when this barrier had been set up.

"Oh, Yun'er, my poor Yun'er!" Xie Lengchan exclaimed, nearly collapsing to the ground upon seeing Su Ziyun's bloodied face.

Regardless of her daughter's betrayal, she still saw her as her own flesh and blood, the daughter she had doted on since childhood. Seeing her in such a battered state filled her heart with distress.

"Mother, save, save Yun'er. Yun'er is in pain," Su Ziyun cried, her tears mixing with the blood, giving her a grotesque appearance.

"Don't be afraid, Yun'er. Mother is here to save you," Xie Lengchan reassured her, casting a sharp glance at Ji Rui.

"So, it's the young lady and the young prince from the Qingguo Gong's mansion. How did my Yun'er provoke Miss Ji to the point where she wanted to harm her?" Xie Yuan's face turned cold.

"Hmph! It's because she can't keep her mouth shut and speaks nonsense," Ji Rui retorted, her confidence undiminished. She looked at Xie Yuan and Lord Ke with a superior air, considering the Taifu Mansion beneath her notice. Her sister was the empress and the favored queen of the Haoyue Emperor, and her nephew was the prince. These people were mere ants in her eyes.

When Lord Ke realized that it was Ji Yu and Ji Rui, his demeanor didn't waver. He was the emperor's most trusted confidant, always basing his judgments on evidence and the words of Emperor Haoyue. Although Xie Yuan had come with an imperial decree to request the release of the prisoner, Lord Ke didn't question the reason; he simply released the person. However, meeting the Ji siblings added complexity to the situation. After all, the Zhenguo Gong family was not to be trifled with.

"Even if Miss Su said something inappropriate, you cannot administer punishment privately," Lord Ke said sternly.

"Lord Ke, I advise you not to meddle in this matter too much. Even though you are the emperor's loyal subordinate, you can't resist the power of favoritism in the harem. Miss Su has also been taught a lesson. Please refrain from interfering," Ji Rui said, looking at Lord Ke with a mix of disdain and expectation, hoping he would understand her implied message.

Upon hearing Ji Rui's words, Xie Yuan suppressed his anger. The queen held the most favor in the harem, and Ji Rui's argument made sense.

The two siblings swaggered their way out, and nobody dared to stop them.

Lord Ke's eyes flickered with sarcasm. People like Xinzhi rarely had a good ending.

He signaled for the jailer behind him to open the prison cell door.

Xie Lengchan rushed in and embraced Su Ziyun.

At that moment, the blood stains on Su Ziyun's face turned black, and her condition worsened.

Xie Lengchan was horrified and turned around, shouting, "Brother, that wicked woman's silver whip is coated with poison!"

"Quickly, let's take Yun'er back and treat her wounds," Xie Yuan commanded the people accompanying him.

Ji Yu and Ji Rui entered the carriage with a swagger.

Ji Rui still puzzled over the situation. "I couldn't kill that despicable person and ended up leaving empty-handed."

"You dare to say that? You truly have a male pet on your side," Ji Yu looked at his sister with disgust.

As a man, he found it repulsive that women would engage in such behavior. Although he knew that many prominent families in the capital had such practices, it disgusted him even more when it involved his own sister.

"Sister, do you believe what that wicked woman said?" Ji Rui denied it. She blamed Lin Menghan for leading her astray when she went to the Lin Mansion to confront her about her infatuation with the Cloud City Holy Lord. That encounter resulted in her being introduced to the pleasure of keeping male pets. It was a common practice among the young ladies of influential families, although outsiders were usually unaware of it.

Su Zimo hid in a tall tree, watching their carriage disappear into the distance.

"Haha! It's a pity I couldn't witness the splendid scene. You two wretched birds, enjoy yourselves! The Eight Profound Weapons will remain a mere dream for you."

"Qi'er, did you have fun?" a sudden voice startled Su Zimo, almost causing her to fall off the tree.

"Daddy, what are you doing? You scared me, Qi'er," Su Zimo complained, looking at her father with a pout.

"Daddy, you shouldn't have come out without accompanying Mom. What were you thinking, bringing Qi'er along?" Su Qi said, pouting. If their mother found out that he had gone out to cause trouble again, she would punish him severely, banning him from eating meat for a month.

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